El Ateneo: An Exceptional Bookstore

• El Ateneo Bookstore

If you happen to find yourself in Buenos Aires, El Ateneo Grand Splendid is the bookstore to visit. This temple of books retains all the glamour of its former life as a 1920´s theatre and it is one of the best places to have a leisurely afternoon coffee in Buenos Aires.

Situated on Santa Fe Avenue in Barrio Norte, the building was designed by the architects Peró and Torres Armengol. In 1924 the producer Max Glucksman began broadcasting Radio Splendid from the fourth floor of the building, and his recording company Odeon recorded some of the early Tango greats. In the late twenties the theatre was converted into a movie house and in 1929 showed the first movies ever presented with sound.

Saved from demolition, in February 2000, the ILHSA group, decided to rent this historical building and they were in charge of the renovation. The building kept the original structure and beauty so that it could continue its cultural purpose.

Its spectacular dome, a real masterpiece by the Italian Nazareno Orlandi, the ornate carvings, the crimson stage curtains, the auditorium lighting and many architectural details remain. Despite the changes, the building still retains the feeling of the grand theatre it once was.

The Guardian, a prominent British newspaper, named El Ateneo second in its 2008 list of the World's Ten Best Bookshops.The Top 5 bookstores are Boekhandel Selexyz Dominicanen in Maastricht, the Netherlands ( 1st place ); Livraria Lello in Porto, Portugal ( 3rd place ) Secret Headquarters in Los Angeles, USA ( 4th place ) and Borders in Glasgow, Scotland ( 5th place ).

El Ateneo Bookstore is an icon and an indisputable cultural reference for worldwide Spanish speakers: It receives 3,000 visitors per day. The most important celebrities visited the store and participated in events or presented their work: To name a few: Mario Vargas Llosa, Ernesto Sabato, Mario Benedetti, Marcos Aguinis, Felipe Pigna, Marcela Serrano, León Gieco, Gustavo Santaolalla, Fito Paez, Silvio Rodriguez among other important Latin American intellectuals, writers and singers.

The basement has a collection of local and international music as well as a juniors’ section with books and toys for the youngest generation ( Ateneo Junior ) . The second floor houses science books of all varieties as well as textbooks and more secluded reading corners. The third floor has more music and a selection of DVDs.

This is a place where you can sit in a stage-box and leisurely read a volume of Borges, or sip an expresso where Carlos Gardel once performed. In a city with a rich literary history and excellent bookstores, El Ateneo is a historical and beautiful building to visit.

If you are searching for English language books, the store where you will find a wide variety of English language books is called Kel Ediciones: on Marcelo T. Alvear 1369, 4 blocks away from El Ateneo Bookstore.

El Ateneo Bookstore: 1860, Santa Fe Avenue. Buenos Aires. Argentina.